Steven Gerrard: “I Love Klopp and Believe He Can Help Liverpool Win the League”

Gerrard talks about life as a football manager, why he chose Rangers and his relationship with Klopp

Steven Gerrard joined the Liverpool Football Academy at the age of eight years and made his professional debut at 18 years of age. At only 23, he became Liverpool captain and for 12 years he was our Captain Fantastic.

Background

During his time at Liverpool, Gerrard won two FA Cups, three League Cups, one UEFA Champions League, one UEFA Cup, one FA Community Shield and one UEFA Super Cup. He was named in the PFA Team of the Year a record of eight times, in the UEFA Team of the Year and the FIFA World XI three times, was named the PFA Players’ Player of the Year in 2006 and the FWA Footballer of the Year in 2009. One of the greatest midfielders of his generation, Gerrard was a rarity in that he stayed with his hometown club throughout the majority of his footballing career. He played in 710 games for Liverpool, scoring 186 goals and has the 10th most Premier League appearances with 504 games played.

Make Us Dream

The feature-length documentary about the 27 years Gerrard spent at Liverpool is aptly entitled “Make Us Dream”. The film was released in the United Kingdom on Thursday evening and will be playing at selected cinemas as of Friday, 16 November 2018. It will also be available on Amazon Prime in the coming months. The trailer is incredible and transports you back in time whilst tugging at your heart with clips from the movie instantly reminding us exactly how amazing Steven Gerrard was when he wore Liverpool red.

Prior to the release of the film, Gerrard sat down with The Guardian’s Donald Mcrae and talked about living life as a football manager, his close relationship with Jürgen Klopp, and why he chose to move to Rangers – who under his management are currently in third in the Scottish Premier League (two points behind Celtic). Donald Mcrae also ghost-wrote Steven’s 2015 Autobiography entitled, My Story.

The Guardian Interview Excerpt

Gerrard says that football continued to grip him after he retired. He has immersed himself in life as a manager and joined Rangers because of the similarities the club had to Liverpool in terms of the passion and rivalry, saying, “Rangers are like Liverpool in many ways. The city, the people’s love for the club and the pressures are the same. I did it for 17 years as a professional and loved it, and I hope this starts a new journey.”

On his decision to stay at Liverpool despite other clubs who came knocking he says, “The most important thing is the final decision was the right one. Nine out of 10 people might argue I would have made more money, won more trophies, blah, blah. But them people are not me. They’re not in my city and they don’t have that connection with my club. That’s why I’m the one in 10.”

And on whether being a manager can be an enjoyable experience he says, “It’s the same as playing … you only enjoy it when you’re winning.”

Gerrard has learnt a lot from Jürgen Klopp, who, he says, always makes time for him:

I was like a sponge, watching and learning. I watch him on TV and see how he handles situations. I could never be Jürgen with his charisma and energy. But if I can take a few things from him it will be such a help. And if I text, call or see him, Jürgen’s always got time for me. Jürgen’s really good at switching off. When the game is on he’s very emotional but once it’s over he can park the emotion. That’s why he’s so good at handling the pressure. After cup finals and a big setback he’ll be the one to start the party. Tomorrow is a different day and that’s a big lesson I have to learn. I have to live my life outside football while still being a manager. It is difficult but I’m trying. I love Jürgen Klopp and I believe he can help Liverpool win the Premier League. I know what it will mean to the fans because they suffered so much in 2014. So we’re in a great place – and I say ‘we’ because I’m a fan and always will be. But I’ve got two teams in my heart now: Rangers and Liverpool.